Friday, May 24, 2013

This year’s Sephora + Pantone Universe Color of the Year collection has been out for a few months (since March), but I haven’t really been “feeling it” — until now, that is.

With the weather finally warming up & the sun coming out from behind the clouds, 2013’s vibrant collection of Emerald products is (finally!) in-season and on-trend. Perfect for creating a summer smokey eye, or adding just a touch of bright green, now is the perfect time to pick up a couple bold green products to add to your summer makeup kit.

Blogger’s note: so, this post ended up at around a thousand words. Click here or scroll past all the pretty pictures for a two-sentence rundown of each product.

Sephora + Pantone Universe Color Watt Highlighting Mascara ($22 CAD)

Funnily enough, I thought this was the best and worst-performing product in this year’s Color of the Year collection. Dry, matte, and intensely pigmented, the Color Watt mascara really does show up green on the lashes — even short, dark, sparse lashes like my own.

There’s a lash photo of this at the end of the post, but in a nutshell: yes, it absolutely does show up, but the gorgeous green pigment is its downfall, too. It sits in tiny, dry clumps on the lashes, adding neither length nor noticeable volume, and stains for days if it touches the skin.

The stain can be avoided if you carefully remove your mascara with an oil-based or micellar remover on a cotton pad, rubbing down the lash against a halved cotton pad covering your undereye area, but it’s a hell of a hassle for a single effective-but-kitschy product.

Lightspeed Glitter Dust

Sephora + Pantone Universe Lightspeed Glitter Dust ($17 CAD)

On the polar opposite end of the spectrum is the Lightspeed Glitter Dust, which is dry, loose, and milled just large enough to stay on this side of shimmery. The green base is very sheer, and the plentiful sky blue shimmer really predominates, giving it an almost turquoise tone overall.

Like any glitter dust, this really needs a base to stick to, so be sure to have one on hand! On completely dry skin, it comes right off, but on primed or even just freshly-moisturized skin, it adheres like a charm.

Sephora + Pantone Universe Color Cube Lid Liner Stain ($19 CAD)

May I please introduce you to the Sephora + Pantone Universe 2013 cream of the crop? The Lid Liner Stain (which, despite its name, absolutely does not stain) is gorgeous – a well-pigmented shimmery-or-metallic emerald, it makes me think of all the best parts of the Emerald City.

The smooth, light texture of this Color Cube “stain” blends out easily as a wash of green with finely-milled shimmer, but works as a seriously stunning metallic emerald liner, too. Basically, it’s everything the Color Code Prismatic Shadow (below) hopes to someday be.

Color Cube Lid Liner Stain

Color Code Prismatic Shadow

Sephora + Pantone Universe Color Code Prismatic Shadow ($26 CAD)

Okay. I’ll be honest, here: I have no idea what a product like this is doing in a Sephora collection.

Maybe it’s just my lids, but I cannot stand the super-slippery feel of this shadow. Sure, it blends like a charm–the swatch in this post is very heavy–but… what’s the point of a green shadow that blends out to nothing more than a whisper? A nice brown or beige, I can see, but green?

Admittedly, this makes an okay base for something like the Lightspeed Glitter Dust, but it leaves me with significant creasing and lids that look like they’ve been bruised. Or zombie-fied, if that’s a thing.

Lastly, we have the Graphic Sculpt Waterproof Jumbo Liner, which (despite its mouthful of a name) is basically just a jumbo eye pencil. It’s drier than most (this is not the same formula as the Sephora Collection jumbo liners) and blends easily (maybe too easily; I’d recommend using a fluffy brush instead of your fingers), with a resulting sheerness not usually found in cream eye products nowadays.

Of this bunch, the Graphic Sculpt liner is warmer (yellower) in tone, with finely-milled gold shimmer adding complexity and depth to the overall effect.

The verdict?

The one thing I don’t get about this collection is that, if Pantone is all about colour constancy, and the products are all 17-5641 Emerald, or so we’re told… why are they all so different? From the turquoise-leaning glitter to the true-green mascara, this bag of tricks contains way more than one shade of green. Which is great, for nuances in colour, but pretty ironic for a brand like Pantone.

That aside, here are my two-second synposes of the products in this post!

Color Watt Highlighting Mascara: Skip it — no mascara is worth all that heartbreak hassle. I do love the true-green tone of this one, though!

Lightspeed Glitter Dust: If you’re looking for a sheer green with tons of light, icy blue shimmer, it’s worth a look. I love the packaging of this, though I’m not crazy about the product itself.

Color Cube Lid Liner Stain: The best of the bunch! I’d call this one an absolute must-have, if you love green.

Color Code Prismatic Shadow: Pass. Give it a look if you love sheer, slippery bases… and then come back to this post and explain to me how, in the comments, you could possibly love sheer, slippery bases.

Graphic Sculpt Waterproof Jumbo Liner: Try it! If you like jumbo eye pencils, or you’re looking for a warmer green (more yellow, less blue, “earthier”), I think you’ll like this one.

The Color of the Year collection is available here, exclusively at Sephora for 2013, and can be seen in a makeup look here!

Those swatches, oh my oh my! I think my heart just skipped a beat. I love all these emerald-colored products, and I even like the green mascara (I am usually not at all crazy about colored mascara). Sephora did a fantastic job here.
My recent post New in | My big Belgian beauty booty*

That liner is gorgeous, although it might be too close to my WnW one to buy.
(PS I love me some parentheses! I catch myself using them too often and have to cut back!)
My recent post Coming up: Clinique A Different Nail Enamel

It's like I was sent to the Emerald City! The colour theme is gorgeous, but seriously, I don't know if I'd get much wear out of them. I'm not really adventurous with colours in my daily makeup :-P
My recent post Femme Boulevard Does Bridal

This color on green eyes doesn't look so good. I know there are ways to make it work but I don't think I'll bother with. I do find it beautiful on others. The makeup you did, beautiful! :)
My recent post Quick Post: Revlon File'n Peel 6-in-1 / Review

I was really surprised with how well these swatched, to be honest! I think they're a little better on my arm than my eyes, unfortunately, but I feel the same way about the mascara :) Definitely worth a look, even for us black-mascara girls!

Hmm. It's a little too clumpy (with dry bits, not lash-clumping, so it's not that bad) on me, but maybe my lengthening standards are just too high! What can I say; fiber mascaras have really spoiled me :p

Wonderful post!! I bought the Tangerine Tango collection last year, but completely planned to skip everything in this one until seeing your swatches for the lid stain. That's so gorgeous and smooth looking!
My recent post MAC Preview Party Exclusive Photos and Recap